Chapter 196 Chapter 114: Choice (Part 1)
Oran thought of joking with the young girl, but then he realized that Verafia was very different now… Just her being a young girl was completely unsuitable for him to make such a joke. So he suppressed his thoughts and his gaze returned to Ig.
Ig, though in a extremely dire situation and covered in wounds, managed to hold on against every sword momentum from the Blood Sword Swordsman, and was not directly defeated. Instead, he responded without any errors.
“However, this young man’s talent doesn’t seem simple… It’s probably even more special than Fatter’s ‘Eye of Insight’. No wonder you didn’t hesitate to deplete your origin.” Oran turned to the young girl and said. Oran’s words carried a hint of solemnity. Even though Ig’s cultivation and potential were insignificant to this legendary swordsman, the ability the young man displayed made him attach great importance to it.
Even with equal material energy, Ig’s swordsmanship was far inferior to the Blood Sword Swordsman’s, to the point of being worlds apart. The reason Ig could hold on until now, besides trying to imitate Oran’s swordsmanship, was more importantly his ability to perceive tens of thousands of changes in the swordsman’s technique in an instant without error, and even break down the essence of the swordsmanship.
Facing legendary-class swordsmanship with such a level of attainment, Oran, with his knowledge, naturally knew how terrifying this was.
A gentle curve appeared on Verafia’s youthful lips. When she was hesitating whether to save this guy, she didn’t know this would happen, but it wasn’t too late to see it now.
Verafia turned her shining golden flame eyes. Ig was being suppressed and looked extremely dishevelled, but the young man’s understanding of swordsmanship was visibly improving.
The young girl looked at Oran, her lips curved slightly, and she suddenly spoke in a soft voice.
“Teacher Oran, thank you for imparting your swordsmanship to this guy. Your inheritance… I believe Ig will never forget it.”
What Oran had said before was not wrong. With her current essence and her past experience as Lothel, Verafia didn’t need his inheritance. What Verafia requested was naturally for Ig.
And the Blood Sword Swordsman fighting Ig, as Oran’s bloody body, naturally carried the power of blood with every attack. However, he had preemptively cut off the power of blood with his swordsmanship, purely displaying his swordsmanship. More than attacking, he was more like demonstrating to Ig.
Oran looked at Verafia. Compared to before, the young girl’s temperament exuded a touch of bright color, as if she was happy because of Ig’s performance.
The Duke couldn’t help but shake his head. If he hadn’t known that this beautiful and noble girl in front of him was the former Anthel, he might have really mistaken this legendary Flame Princess for an ordinary girl.
However, Oran recalled his state of mind when he taught Lothel swordsmanship, and couldn’t help but feel relieved, smiling.
“Actually, my thoughts cannot be transmitted to the physical body, but since that little guy is your successor, my remnant in the mortal world will naturally pass on the swordsmanship to him.”
“However, you have to see how he chooses. This should be what you value.”
Verafia heard Oran’s words, and her eyelashes lightly blinked over her golden pupils, then she nodded slightly.
—
The overflowing blood magic was instantly annihilated into basic particles and even into violent silent impacts by the terrifying power generated in the attack. The Blood Sword Swordsman raised the long sword in his wrist again.
The entire sky seemed to be swallowed by a sword edge that showed only the word “sharpness” without any light, as if the sword intent that cut through everything had divided the entire sky unobstructed. The sword blade’s cold light cut through all touched substances, and the sky turned into a straight line and fell.
“Boom!”
The cold sword collided with the End, only letting out the slightest sound before being completely ground away by the sword light.
The gale touched the ground, each gust like the true sword held by the opponent, slicing the earth into pieces. Ig raised his eyes, and a blood sword exuding a cold light had already reached him!
“Bang!”
The blood sword struck the End, which was blocking it. The intense impact shock threw Ig back, and the overwhelming sword intent that penetrated it was as sharp as a sharp sword, easily breaking through Ig’s defensive swordsmanship.
Ig stood up, holding his sword, blood seeping from his mouth. If it weren’t for the End in his hand, Ig wouldn’t doubt that he would have been easily severed.
However, even so, the sword intent rampant in his body was wantonly destroying his vitality. Even with the constant influx of life force and energy, Ig felt pain and weakness.
“Is this… ‘Authority’?” Ig said.
In myths, power that transcended the material and was the authority of deities, the projection of everything in the material world, whether it was Dou Qi, magic, or even swordsmanship, seemed like a thin piece of paper before it.
Even the rules that governed the operation of the world could only bow before this noble existence.
And Duke Oran’s sword was a projection of this “Authority.”
Ig never thought he would actually face such a concept that only existed in myths. Although the opponent didn’t intend to destroy him with it, it was more like he was showing it to him.
However, what made Ig more anxious at the moment was not such sublime power, but—
“Boom!”
Ig raised his sword to block the opponent’s suddenly descending attack. The ground beneath him cracked into fragments. The attack that Duke Oran slashed with cut off the cage of time and space. The power that transcended rules seemed to crumple the entire world into a piece of pitch-black paper.
Then it was split apart with a roar.
The annihilation and emission of matter, which was hard to imagine, released terrifying energy again. The entire world collapsed like a palace whose supporting pillars had been cut off.
Ig propped himself up with his palm on the ground and raised his sword to block the fierce gale. Horrific wounds were torn by the sword qi on his arm, and blood flowed profusely, while more energy continuously poured into his body.
Ig turned his head to look at the collapsing world. He remembered Verafia’s words: this world was formed from Duke Oran’s remnant, and his power constructed this ever-changing City of Blood.
However, Duke Oran’s consciousness had awakened. He was using his sword to decompose the world he had constructed out of his unforgotten obsession, and the power he obtained was precisely his bargaining chip to challenge him.
“I hate Lancaster… I hate his deception towards me, the slaughter of my citizens, and the ultimate betrayal. That is why you are able to set foot here.” Duke Oran’s emotionless voice came. The swordsman in blood armor dragged his sword, creating sparks against the broken ground, emitting a sharp sound.
“However, I have finally fallen. For me in this moment, such an obsession naturally has no meaning to persist. It is better to let it bloom here. Lothel’s successor, grasp your sword.”
Ig thought to himself, “You are truly open-minded, old man. What about us?”
